SUV Review: 2011 Infiniti QX56

2011 Infiniti QX56.

PHOTO: Derek McNaughton, Postmedia News

How to make an impressive impression

By Derek McNaughton, Postmedia News

Originally published: August 19, 2010

SMALL

MEDIUM

LARGE

Something’s not right. I should not be averaging 14.6L/100 km in a full-size SUV that I’ve come to call the Mother Ship due to the fact it is undeniably the biggest, baddest most technologically-advanced SUV in the universe.

In fact, how we came to average an even better 13.3L/100km after a less-than-tippy-toeing-run on the highway has me equally perplexed — not because Infiniti pulled a few all-nighters in the wind tunnel with the all-new QX56 to make it streamlined — but because a 400-horsepower V8 powering a 2,654-kg vehicle shaped not much differently than a country shed should not be anything close to efficient.

Of course, some will argue that people who buy expensive, luxury SUVs don’t care much about efficiency, or the cost of gasoline or how much fuel they consume, to which I say hogwash. The privileged, most often, attained their status precisely because for all their lives they took care of the pennies, which in turn took care of the toonies. Those ingrained principles don’t get abandoned just because you happen to spend $73,000 on a luxury SUV. No one, especially the rich, enjoys spending money uselessly or foolishly — it’s far more satisfactory to spend $1,000 on some rare single malt than $100 on premium.

So it was a pleasant surprise to see the QX register such agreeable fuel economy. The official rating is 15.7L/100km city and 10.3 highway, which is edging close to the many crossovers populating the driveways of Canada. Had Infiniti added an eighth gear to its already marvelous seven-speed transmission (like Mercedes, BMW and Audi have started to do), or added some kind of cylinder deactivation — or even an automatic engine-stop function when idling, the numbers would be even more impressive.

That new transmission, by the way, works marvelously. While I can’t vouch for its hunting ability while towing anything near its maximum 3,855-kg rating, around town and on the highway it was a genuine sweetheart, smooth, predictable with no lurching or lags. In fact, many of the shifts are not even noticeable when going easy on the gas. Cruising at 120 km/h, the engine was purring within a hair of 1,800 rpm.

Making an impression is certainly something you will do in a QX56, with 9.2 inches of ground clearance, an overall length of 5,290 mm and overall width of 2,030 mm, all riding on what must be the largest optional wheels on a production vehicle – 22-inch nine spoke alloys that come with the optional technology package ($8,000). The wheels look absolutely gorgeous, not as gaudy as that girth might suggest. The new QX is definitely no longer a gussied up Nissan Armada.

In fact, almost all the proportions, curving fenders and stout headlamps of the QX blend to create, dare I say it, an attractive, alluring look that genuinely mask its size, especially with those wheels (though I can’t imagine what winter tires might cost). The design, especially the grille and sloped front fenders, clearly reveals the QX’s lineage, joining the beautiful-looking family of G and M cars. Even the QX’s fender vents, one of which works as an intake port for the engine, come across as interesting. The only thing missing was LED turn signals.

But it’s not just the clothes that make the QX, which first appeared as a 2004 model and was, at the time, based off the newish Nissan Titan pickup. Infiniti seems to have realized luxury SUV buyers buzzing to the cottage every weekend want real comfort and silence. To that end, the QX delivers: other than the first minute at startup, the truck is — and I’m not exaggerating here — not much noisier at idle than the humming birds at my cottage feeder. Sure, the subtle ticking of the direct-injection engine can be detected, but that’s it. On the highway, Cadillac engineers could only dream of their Escalade being this quiet.

Adding to the eloquence is a ride that could make the crater-filled roads of Montreal seem like the smooth asphalt of Germany. Cornering, too, is well controlled thanks to the QX’s leveling system that uses hydraulic shocks to back up the four-wheel independent suspension, lifting and lowering the body as needed to keep the cabin as level as possible at all times. Push it a little too fast around a highway bend and none of the typical sway associated with a big SUV can be felt. Yes, you can feel the mass, but the QX stays surprisingly stable in the bends.

Step on the gas and the 5.6L V8 makes another statement altogether. Blessed with 400 horsepower and 413 lb.-ft. of torque (a 25% improvement over the current model), the new engine shows some genuine game as it leaps to 100 km/h in, far as I could measure, about 7 seconds. The engine sounds wonderful, too, when hooning about. There’s also a nice feel to the engine as it winds up, though the speed-assisted steering doesn’t return anything like the feedback found in a G37.

The 13-speaker BOSE stereo may have lacked the kind of punch, treble and bass you’d expect inside a cabin as sumptuous as the QX’s, but the interior is just short of stunning. The seats could be the most comfortable on any SUV on Earth. The instrument panel is an elegant, pleasing array of coloured, backlight gauges surrounded by an uncomplicated array of controls and surfaces touched off by chrome, wood and leather.

The steering wheel with the optional package is a combination of wood and leather, but the standard wheel might be better made of all leather, which would feel better in the fingers. The centre-mounted map and info unit is easy to read, with clear lettering, outstanding graphics and the right combination of information. More cubbies and a deeper centre storage, however, would add some needed utility up front.

The QX has no shortcoming, though, when it comes to technology and includes some market-leading functions such as Lane Departure Warning (LDW), Lane Departure Prevention (LDP), Blind Spot Warning (BSW) and Distance Control Assist (DCA). They all work to keep the SUV on the straight and narrow and help you avoid hitting anything in front, but I wondered if they might make a driver complacent instead of keeping him alert. Easily the best feature, though, is Infiniti’s around view monitor that employs four exterior cameras to provide a 360-degree overhead view displayed on the vehicle’s in-dash monitor, giving drivers a bird’s eye view of the vehicle as they’re backing up. There is simply no better back-up camera on the market, and the bonus is you can use it at slow speeds to see forward of the front bumper even.

With seating for seven, or eight with the optional middle row bench seat, cargo room is 470 litres with all seats up, 1,405 with the third row folded down (which are a bit slow to stow via power buttons) and nearly 2,700 litres with all seats folded. It’s too bad the third row seats don’t fold totally flat, and that the nifty two-step bumper from the previous QX was not retained, but the power liftgate is handy and can also be controlled from the driver’s seat.

In dealerships now, the new QX is no longer built in the US, now assembled in Kyushu, Japan. At $73,000 to start, the 2011 price is the same as the outgoing 2010 model, even though this Mother Ship has beamed itself light years ahead of the old.